FLH PDDM Chapter 9 - Eastern Federal Lands Highway Division

9.4.H. Reviews.H. Reviews. PS&E development involves various stages of review. The objective of a fieldreview/plan-in-hand inspection is to ensure to the maximum extent practical that the location and design reflectand are consistent with Federal, State and local goals, objectives, and standards.All cooperating agencies and appropriate Federal Lands Highway Division staff should be invited to each fieldreview. These reviews give the designer the opportunity to present the proposed design to the cooperatingagencies and to solicit comments to ensure that the design is being developed in compliance with the intendedscope, and social and environmental commitments.It also gives the designer the opportunity to verify data and check office proposals against field conditions tominimize construction concerns.Field reviews give cooperating agencies a medium for free and open discussion that encourages early andamicable resolution of controversial issues that may arise during the development of the PS&E package.The need for a field review to fulfill the stated objective depends on a wide variety of factors that cannot bepredetermined even on a project-by-project basis.The reviews may range from multi-disciplinary and multi-agency inspections to specialized on-the-groundmeetings with a single discipline to resolve a specific problem. In all cases, the conclusions reached at the fieldreviews require documentation and distribution to the interested parties.The designer will usually be involved in at least three design reviews as follows:(1) The first review covers the preliminary design and results in approval of the major design features for aproject, e.g., horizontal and vertical alignments, typical section, access control, etc.The information available for this first review ranges from very little to completed detail maps and profilesshowing preliminary alignments and plotted cross sections. This strictly depends on the scale of constructionproposed, (e.g., RRR to new construction).At these early reviews, concentrate on resolving roadway geometrics, safety considerations, environmentalmitigation efforts, and cost effectiveness of the proposed improvement.Emphasize any exceptions to standards along with the associated hazards so that the highway operating agencyis aware of the ramifications of the decisions.(2) The second or plan-in-hand design review is to review preliminary plans and specifications for theproposed project. On some projects an intermediate review may not be necessary to complete the design. Theprimary purpose of this review is to finalize the design elements and other special conditions for inclusion inthe PS&E package.At this second stage the preliminary design should conform with the governing criteria, including input fromgeotechnical and hydraulic reports, environmental documents, safety requirements, and other matters pertinentto the project. Discuss those items affecting the plans or special contract requirements and make arrangementsfor obtaining the necessary data.Following the intermediate design stage, the designer should prepare the final plans, special contractrequirements, and complete the engineer's estimate for the project.9 - 127